196 Bulletin 157. 



is in its attack on the l)uds in early spring. It has been recorded 

 that vines are often killed to the gronnd by the attack of the 

 beetles at this time ; we have never seen so severe an attack in 

 New York. We have often seen a grape-vine looking almost as 

 bare as a in figure 16 in June, recuperate to such an extent that 

 before the summer is over, we would never suspect that it had 

 been injured by this insect, except that such vines lack the 

 element of profit — the fruit. 



Thus these flea-beetles, by eating the buds in the spring, attack 

 a very vital part of the vine, so far as the grape-growers pocket- 

 book is concerned. For it is on the season's growth from these 

 buds that all the fruit is borne, and. therefore, every time that 

 the beetle eats a bud, it destroys the crop of fruit which that part 

 of the vine might have produced. 



This grape-vine flea-beetle is thus capable of nipping in the 

 bud, the entire crop of fruit, but fortunately it seems to have 

 thus far accumulated in sufficient numbers to do notable injur}' 

 only over small or isolated areas. 



While most of the destruction wrought by this pest is done b}' 

 the beetle in eating into the buds in the spring, the grubs, or 

 progeny of these beetles, feed upon the leaves later and often do 

 some damage. And again, the beetles which develop in July 

 and August from these grubs, also feed on the grape leaves 

 usually, however, doing no noticeable damage. The work of 

 both the grubs and this later crop of beetles is easily recognized. 

 In figure 19, page 205, is shown a branch on which most of the 

 leaves have been riddled by the grubs ; in figure 18 is shown one 

 of the injured leaves natural size. The work of the beetle on the 

 leaves is similar to that of the grubs. This riddling and 

 skeletonizing of the foliage is done b}' the grubs in June and 

 continued later by the beetles. As man}^ such riddled leaves on 

 the vine presages a destructive crop of the beetles to feed on the 

 buds the next spring, grape-growers finding such leaves should 

 be on the lookout for the pest as soon as growth begins in the 

 spring. 



The Story of its Life. 



Appearance and habits in the spring. — The little steel-blue 

 beetles come from their winter quarters in the north in April, or 



